The Little Mermaid (Television Series)
The Little Mermaid is an American animated television series based on the 1989 Disney animated film of the same name. This is the first Disney television series to be spun off from a major animated film. Summary ''The Little Mermaid ''is a prequel television series that originally aired from 1992 to 1994, depicts Ariel's life as a mermaid under the sea with Sebastian, Flounder, and her father. Ariel appears in all 31 episodes of the series, which is set an unspecified time before the first film. The series follows Ariel's adventures with her friends and family, and sometimes has Ariel foiling the attempts of enemies that are intent on harming her or the kingdom of Atlantica. Ariel's relationships with various characters from the film are highlighted and expanded, such as the love and occasional conflict between Ariel and her father, how Ariel met Flounder and Scuttle, the relationships between Ariel and her sisters, and Ariel's early fear and avoidance of Ursula the sea witch. Other recurring new characters are also introduced, such as merboy Urchin and mermaid Gabriella that become Ariel's friends, as well as the Evil Manta, Lobster Mobster and Da Shrimp, who are Ariel's enemies. Ariel's mother is absent from the series, having already died prior to the events of the series, though she is occasionally mentioned in vague terms. In one episode Ariel comes across Hans Christian Andersen, author of "The Little Mermaid". In the fictionalized encounter she saves Andersen's life, inspiring him to write the story. Characters From the 1989 film * Ariel (voiced by Jodi Benson) - is the youngest daughter of the sea king. She loves singing and going on adventures. She also has developed magic in season 2 (episode 9) to save her world. * Flounder (voiced by Edan Gross in season 1, and by Bradley Pierce in seasons 2-3) - Ariel's best friend, a bright yellow and blue colored tropical fish who follows along on her adventures, and can be easily scared. * Sebastian (voiced by Samuel E. Wright) - A small red Jamaican crab who acts as the king's advisor, court musician, a teacher, a scout leader and a babysitter like figure for Ariel. * King Triton (voiced by Kenneth Mars) - is Ariel's father and ruler of Atlantica who protects his kingdom with his magic trident. * Scuttle (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) - is a clumsy seagull who is friends with Ariel. He first appears in the episode "Scuttle". At first Ariel is afraid of him, but they become friends after he helps them rescue Sebastian. * Attina (voiced by Kath Soucie) - one of Ariel's six older sisters * Aquata (voiced by Mona Marshall) - one of Ariel's six older sisters * Andrina (voiced by Catherine Cavadini) - one of Ariel's six older sisters * Arista (voiced by Mary Kay Bergman) - one of Ariel's six older sisters * Adella (voiced by Sherry Lynn) - one of Ariel's six older sisters * Alana (voiced by Kimmy Robertson) - one of Ariel's six older sisters * Glut, a shark who tries to eat Ariel * Ursula (voiced by Pat Carroll) - is a powerful cecaelian sea witch who occasionally antagonizes Ariel * Flotsam and Jetsam (voiced by Paddi Edwards) - They are Ursula's green moral eel informers who spy others and show Ursula what they are seeing with their magic yellow eye, they have one eye white and the other yellow * Prince Eric (voiced by Jeff Bennett) - Ariel's future husband. His first appearance is in the episode "Thingamajigger" and appears occasionally throughout the seasons with his dog, Max, as a puppy. Ariel first sees him rescuing a dolphin from a net, which technically makes this scene the first time she has ever seen Eric, but does not know who he is. Eric also sees Ariel swimming on the surface for a couple of seconds but no one believed him. Original characters * Urchin (voiced by Danny Cooksey) - He is a young orphan merboy and Ariel's friend. He shares her love for adventure and is unofficially her adopted brother, and at one point starts to develop romantic feelings for Ariel. * The Lobster Mobster (voiced by Joe Alaskey) - A red-violet lobster gangster who follows the style of the 1920s gangster stereotype. Da Shrimp (voiced by David Lander) is his sidekick. * The Evil Manta (voiced by Tim Curry) - An evil human/manta ray hybrid who repeatedly tries to take over Atlantica. He has a son named Little Evil who Ariel befriends in the episode "A Little Evil". * Pearl (voiced by Cree Summer) - A spoiled, thrill-seeking mermaid whose actions often lead to Ariel, as well as herself, getting in trouble. * Spot (voiced by Frank Welker) - A killer whale calf whom Ariel adopted and secretly raised in the palace. * Simon (voiced by Brian Cummings) - A lonely, but friendly lavender-colored sea dragon whom Ariel, Sebastian, and Flounder befriend. * Gabriella - A dead-mute Latino mermaid who dreams of being able to sing. Gabriella's sign language is translated by her blue octopus friend Ollie (voiced by Whitby Hertford). This character is based on a real person who was a fan of the show but died during its first season. * Moray (voiced by Dave Coulier) - A dark green moray eel salesman and con-artist who occasionally sells items to Ariel that alternately help her or get her into trouble. * The Crabscouts (occasionally voiced by J.D. Daniels, Anndi McAfee, Bradley Pierce, Malachi Pearson, and Whitby Hertford) - Crab children, consisting of two boys and one girl, who are under the mentorship of Sebastian in a scout-like troop. * Flo and Ebb (voiced by Kath Soucie and Richard Karron) - Two brown alligator criminals who appear in the episode "Beached". * The Magical Wishing Starfish (voiced by Tony Jay) - A giant starfish with a beard and crown who only appears in the episode "Wish Upon a Starfish". * Emperor Sharga (voiced by Jim Cummings) - Ruler of the Sharkanians, the aggressive shark-people who live in Sharkania similar to the merfolk who live in Atlantica. Sharga wishes to take over Atlantica someday. * The Ancient Seaclops (voiced by Jim Cummings) - An ancient one-eyed sea monster whose primary objective is to sleep every 1,000 years and wants to see it through more than anything else. He gets very angry when he is woken abruptly by any loud noise and appeared in the episode "Calliope Dreams". * Dudley (voiced by Lawrence Montaigne) - is an elderly sea turtle who serves as an assistant to King Triton other than Sebastian. He walks on the ocean floor unlike other turtles. * Hans Christian Andersen (voiced by Mark Hamill) - A fictionalized version of the author Hans Christian Andersen, who appears in the episode "Metal Fish" where he rides a fish-shaped submarine and sees Ariel, which inspires him to write the story "The Little Mermaid". * Archimedes (voiced by Rob McKuen) - A merman who knows about human things, appearing in "Metal Fish". List of Episodes Season 1 (1992) Season 2 (1993) Season 3 (1994) Category:Television Shows Category:Article stubs Category:The Little Mermaid